U.S. Pat. No. 6,417,778 to Blum et al., which is fully incorporated herein by reference, describes an electronic display device associated with a floor, that enables conveying information via dynamic images and text. The present disclosure relates to various novel and advantageous features of such an electronic display device.
For example, the electronic display device may be included in an overall floor display system including a protective housing for the display device, control electronics, sensors and other components. To avoid creating a trip hazard, the floor display system may be designed to present a minimum of impediment to persons walking. Thus, the floor display system may be very thin, be substantially coplanar with a floor or imbedded in a floor, or the like, making the floor display system very easy to walk across or step onto.
Market research suggests that because of its nearly imperceptible profile, in terms of how it affects a person's normal stride, persons (e.g. shoppers in a store) will sometimes be unaware of a floor display system having the above-described design, even while actually standing near or directly on the floor display system. Accordingly, there is a need to alert a person to the presence of the floor display system when he or she is standing near or on it, so that the person will look down and take in the content of a display, such as a message or advertisement.